Everton's hopes of a top-four finish look remote after a pair of own goals cost Roberto Martinez's side at Southampton.

Already a point behind fourth-placed Arsenal, the Toffees arrived on the south coast knowing a fourth successive away win was required in order to keep their charge for Champions League qualification alive.

However, first-half own goals from Antolin Alcaraz and Seamus Coleman cost Everton dear as Southampton secured a deserved 2-0 win that saw the club equal their best ever Premier League tally of 52 points.

The visitors were fighting an uphill battle after just 53 seconds at St Mary's as a rusty-looking Alcaraz directed past goalkeeper Tim Howard, with Coleman following suit after 31 minutes to double Saints' advantage.

Everton attempted to claw their way back but few of their fans could argue with the result, which would have been worse was it not for wayward finishing and referee Michael Oliver waving away several penalty appeals.

Rickie Lambert - one of several English players impressing in front of England manager Roy Hodgson - also clipped the post with a 25-yard free-kick as Southampton ended a three-match winless streak and handed Arsenal the opportunity to move four points clear of Everton with victory over Newcastle.

The defeat brought Martinez's men crashing down after last weekend's 2-0 victory against Manchester United.

Patrick Barclay's Premier League team of the season

Patrick Barclay's Premier League team of the season

1/12
DAVID MARSHALL

The Luis Suarez of goalkeepers. It could be argued Marshall has saved as many goals on Cardiff’s behalf as Suarez has scored for Liverpool. The wonder is he’s got to the age of 29 with a mere 11 caps for Scotland. A boy wonder (with Celtic) turned late developer.

2/12
SEAMUS COLEMAN

The very model of a modern full-back, Coleman drives forward with searing pace and has much better skills than other quickies such as Tottenham’s Kyle Walker. As impressive this season as Everton colleague Leighton Baines, which is saying something, the Irishman merits Champions League football.

3/12
GARY CAHILL

To keep Vincent Kompany and Martin Skrtel out of my side, Cahill has needed to improve steadily through the season. Job done. The Chelsea man has height, good feet and an increasing awareness of the need for defensive concentration that can only have come from association with John Terry.

4/12
JOHN TERRY

I thought he looked a bit rusty in the first couple of months of the season. The old eyes must have been deceiving me. Terry is still tough and relentlessly determined but a little cleverer, if anything, and often so majestic in his passing as to suggest he could quite comfortably play in midfield.

5/12
LUKE SHAW

Not to choose someone from Southampton would seem odd and, besides, the powerful teenager has performed so consistently well as to leave Ashley Cole sweating on a World Cup place with England. He’s not a bad defender as well as excellent going forward. A young Maldini, maybe.

6/12
STEVEN GERRARD

In my opinion, the England captain is playing the best football of his life now Brendan Rodgers has convinced him that Roy Of The Rovers is best left in comics (not that he didn’t bring the role to glorious life more than a few times). A truly responsible leader, nearing greatness.

7/12
YAYA TOURE

He may have the build of a brick outhouse but there are not many daintier technicians in a Premier League midfield (okay, maybe David Silva, just) than Toure. Also as devastating a free-kick exponent as any, curling them low over the wall and inside the near post.

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8/12
RAHEEM STERLING

You keep waiting for his form to dip but it just gets better and better — and more complex. The sudden twist with which he made space to score against Manchester City might have come from Pathe footage of a young Pele. Over-excited? Yes but I don’t see such class every day.

9/12
AARON RAMSEY

Many on the Emirates slopes despaired of him. But it took time and guts to get over a badly broken leg and Ramsey has proved himself with a quite magnificent (if again injury-interrupted) season. As a goalscoring midfielder, up there with vintage Lampard.

10/12
EDEN HAZARD

Exciting enough, especially before Christmas, to be a Player of the Year candidate in a normal season. Unfortunately for the Belgian, this isn’t a normal season. But he’s of a type Jose Mourinho loves — a flair player with a work ethic. Quick too. A Chelsea legend in the making.

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11/12
LUIS SUAREZ

The Uruguayan’s made it an abnormal season. Having missed the start due to illicit use of those trademark teeth, he took the Premier League by the scruff of its neck and made Liverpool the most dramatically improved team. Players’ Player of the Year and Suarez has, in all likelihood, won over the football writers too.

12/12
AND MY RESERVE XI

It has to be Hugo Lloris in goal despite the continuing excellence of Petr Cech and Wojciech Szczesny’s resurgence. Across the back are Pablo Zabaleta, Kompany, Skrtel — I didn’t think much of him until this season — and Baines. Jordan Henderson and Fernandinho are the first line of midfield, with Adam Lallana, Sergio Aguero and Ross Barkley in the creative positions and Daniel Sturridge up front. On second thoughts, Barkley’s time will come — I’m going 4-3-3 and leaving him out in favour of Mile Jedinak, representing Tony Pulis’s Crystal Palace.

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That result saw their former manager David Moyes lose his job at the Old Trafford helm but also came at a cost for the Toffees, who lost key men Kevin Mirallas and Sylvain Distin to injury.

Their replacements Gerard Deulofeu and Alcaraz are by no means slouches, but the latter's rustiness cost his side with less than a minute on the clock.

In just his fourth league start of the season, the Paraguay defender appeared flustered by the attention of Sam Gallagher and rather comically turned a Lambert cross past Howard.

Alcaraz's moment of madness was the worst possible start for Everton, yet they did not collapse and Coleman soon darted down the flank and crossed for Romelu Lukaku.

The shot that followed, though, was poor and it took until the 15th minute for Martinez's side to muster a first shot on target, and even then Artur Boruc easily dealt with Deulofeu's tame strike.

Gallagher's ignored appeal for handball against John Stones was all Saints had to show during the spell that followed their goal, although they were by now in control.

Jack Cork got away a shot as an injury to Steven Naismith temporarily reduced Everton to 10 men, with the Scotland international returning just in time to see former Rangers team-mate Steven Davis miss a glorious chance after a fine Lambert cut back.

Leighton Baines whipped in a threatening free-kick on the one occasion the Saints right-back lost the duel with the Barcelona loanee, although the cross evaded his team-mates and Saints capitalised.

Not only adept at the back, Clyne is a fine attacking option and bombed forward before fizzing over a wonderful cross that was just too high for Stones to head clear, leaving the unsighted Coleman to helplessly direct into his own goal.

Lovren powered a header at Howard soon after as Saints looked for a third, and after Lukaku directed over Boruc's goal, referee Oliver rejected vocal handball appeals against Stones after the Everton defender handled an Adam Lallana cross.

Naismith had handball appeals of his own waved away in first-half stoppage time and continued to prove a nuisance when played resumed, with Cork doing well to block wide his effort on goal.

The Saints midfielder had an attempt of his own at the other end and Lallana struck at Howard, who was relieved to see a 25-yard Lambert free-kick clip the post and go wide.

Substitute Leon Osman joined team-mate Gareth Barry in the book after being adjudged to have taken a tumble in the box under a challenge from Lovren, before fellow replacement Aiden McGeady's cross was headed straight at Boruc by Lukaku.

Referee Oliver was again the focus as Shaw and Lallana saw penalty appeals waved away after apparent handballs by Coleman and Stones, before a rather relieved Boruc saw a Baines cross dip just wide.

Everton were attacking in numbers in an attempt to reduce the deficit and had a spot-kick appeal of their own rejected after James McCarthy claimed he was impeded by Lovren, although their attacking mind-set was leaving gaps at the back.

Lallana showed wonderful skill to burst to the byline but Lambert was unable to convert late on, while Howard did well to deny substitute James Ward-Prowse.